Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2003
Encyclopedia
The Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2003 (c.28) is an Act
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
which regulates the legal deposit
of publications in the United Kingdom
. It was a private member's bill
which was passed to update the legislation on legal deposit to reflect the digital age.
The previous provisions covering legal deposit in the United Kingdom were under the Copyright Act 1911
. They covered published paper products of almost all types, excluding only ephemera
such as diaries and bus timetables. By the beginning of the 21st century many publications appeared in electronic form, either exclusively or in addition to their print form. A voluntary set of rules for deposit had been drawn up a few years earlier but it was felt that the additional force of statute was required to ensure the British national published record remained complete.
As under the previous legislation there are six libraries entitled to printed works. The British Library
is entitled to a copy of every printed works published in the United Kingdom. A publisher must send a copy to the British Library within a month of the work being published. The copy sent to the British Library must be of the same quality as the best copies published in the UK at the time.
The other five libraries, the Bodleian Library
, the Cambridge University Library
, the Library of Trinity College, Dublin, the National Library of Wales
and the National Library of Scotland
are not automatically entitled to be sent a copy of the printed works. However, the five libraries have the right to send a publisher a request for a printed work within twelve months of the publication of the work. The publisher must deliver a copy within a month of receipt of the request. The quality of works sent to any of the five libraries must be of the same quality as the largest number of copies of the work published in the UK at the time of the request. Trinity College Dublin is included in the Act despite it being outside the UK's jurisdiction, as the Act continued the more ancient right bestowed on the college in 1801, when Ireland
was part of the Union.
Each of these five libraries sends requests via the Agency for the Legal Deposit Libraries
, who receives copies of the works and distributes them to the individual libraries. Publishers may also send copies to the Agency in advance of a request being submitted to them.
The 2003 Act includes provisions for the deposit of non-print publications such as CD-ROM
s and copies of website
s. The Secretary of State is given powers to make regulations governing the deposit of non-print publications. The regulations are permitted to include such things as provisions determining how and when a non-print publication must be deposited; when an online work is considered to be published in the UK and therefore subject to the 2003 Act; the quality and means of delivery of the copy of the work; the format that the deposited copy must be presented in where different formats of the work exist; an obligation to give the deposit library information to make the work accessible and the timing when deposit must be made. There are also restrictions put in place as to the activities that may be undertaken with the non-print publications, unless those activities are authorised by regulations made by the Secretary of State. Those restrictions include copying the material, adapting a computer program or database, lending the material, transferring the material to a third party or disposing of the material. Even the using of the material is prohibited subject to regulations stating otherwise. The power to make regulations restricting various matters, including when non-print publications may be used, which readers may use the material and how many people may use a non-print publication at once is also provided for. The 2003 Act also contains provisions that prevent regulations meaning publishers must deposit non-print publications at Trinity College, Dublin unless Irish law on copyright and related rights contains equivalent protections to British copyright law, that the restrictions on the acts that may be done with non-print publications are equivalent to British law and that the liability exceptions in Irish law are equivalent to those in British law.
The 2003 Act also inserted various exceptions to copyright and database right into the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
and the Copyright and Rights in Databases Regulations 1997 to prevent the use of non-print publications by deposit libraries infringing copyright and/or database rights
. However, the 2003 Act enabled regulations to be made restricting the exceptions to copyright for non-print publications so that deposited works may not be copied more freely than an equivalent work available at an ordinary library. Various exemptions from liability against breach of contract; infringement of copyright, database right or publication right
; criminal liability or damages for defamation were also enacted by the 2003 Act to protect deposit libraries using works and publishers sending works to deposit libraries from actions for breach of those liabilities that could otherwise occur.
Section 16 of the 2003 Act and the power to make regulations came into force upon Royal Assent
of the 2003 Act. The rest of the Act was brought into force on 1 February 2004 by a commencement order. The 2003 Act extends to the whole of the United Kingdom.
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
which regulates the legal deposit
Legal deposit
Legal deposit is a legal requirement that a person or group submit copies of their publications to a repository, usually a library. The requirement is mostly limited to books and periodicals. The number of copies varies and can range from one to 19 . Typically, the national library is one of the...
of publications in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It was a private member's bill
Private Member's Bill
A member of parliament’s legislative motion, called a private member's bill or a member's bill in some parliaments, is a proposed law introduced by a member of a legislature. In most countries with a parliamentary system, most bills are proposed by the government, not by individual members of the...
which was passed to update the legislation on legal deposit to reflect the digital age.
The previous provisions covering legal deposit in the United Kingdom were under the Copyright Act 1911
Copyright Act 1911
The Copyright Act 1911, also known as the Imperial Copyright Act of 1911, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which received Royal Assent on 16 December 1911. The act established copyright law in the UK and the British Empire...
. They covered published paper products of almost all types, excluding only ephemera
Ephemera
Ephemera are transitory written and printed matter not intended to be retained or preserved. The word derives from the Greek, meaning things lasting no more than a day. Some collectible ephemera are advertising trade cards, airsickness bags, bookmarks, catalogues, greeting cards, letters,...
such as diaries and bus timetables. By the beginning of the 21st century many publications appeared in electronic form, either exclusively or in addition to their print form. A voluntary set of rules for deposit had been drawn up a few years earlier but it was felt that the additional force of statute was required to ensure the British national published record remained complete.
As under the previous legislation there are six libraries entitled to printed works. The British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
is entitled to a copy of every printed works published in the United Kingdom. A publisher must send a copy to the British Library within a month of the work being published. The copy sent to the British Library must be of the same quality as the best copies published in the UK at the time.
The other five libraries, the Bodleian Library
Bodleian Library
The Bodleian Library , the main research library of the University of Oxford, is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library...
, the Cambridge University Library
Cambridge University Library
The Cambridge University Library is the centrally-administered library of Cambridge University in England. It comprises five separate libraries:* the University Library main building * the Medical Library...
, the Library of Trinity College, Dublin, the National Library of Wales
National Library of Wales
The National Library of Wales , Aberystwyth, is the national legal deposit library of Wales; one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies.Welsh is its main medium of communication...
and the National Library of Scotland
National Library of Scotland
The National Library of Scotland is the legal deposit library of Scotland and is one of the country's National Collections. It is based in a collection of buildings in Edinburgh city centre. The headquarters is on George IV Bridge, between the Old Town and the university quarter...
are not automatically entitled to be sent a copy of the printed works. However, the five libraries have the right to send a publisher a request for a printed work within twelve months of the publication of the work. The publisher must deliver a copy within a month of receipt of the request. The quality of works sent to any of the five libraries must be of the same quality as the largest number of copies of the work published in the UK at the time of the request. Trinity College Dublin is included in the Act despite it being outside the UK's jurisdiction, as the Act continued the more ancient right bestowed on the college in 1801, when Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
was part of the Union.
Each of these five libraries sends requests via the Agency for the Legal Deposit Libraries
Agency for the Legal Deposit Libraries
The Agency for the Legal Deposit Libraries acts as on behalf of five of the legal deposit libraries defined in United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland law to obtain copies of material published and distributed in those countries.The current Agency came into existence on 2 March 2009 and is based at...
, who receives copies of the works and distributes them to the individual libraries. Publishers may also send copies to the Agency in advance of a request being submitted to them.
The 2003 Act includes provisions for the deposit of non-print publications such as CD-ROM
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a pre-pressed compact disc that contains data accessible to, but not writable by, a computer for data storage and music playback. The 1985 “Yellow Book” standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of binary data....
s and copies of website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
s. The Secretary of State is given powers to make regulations governing the deposit of non-print publications. The regulations are permitted to include such things as provisions determining how and when a non-print publication must be deposited; when an online work is considered to be published in the UK and therefore subject to the 2003 Act; the quality and means of delivery of the copy of the work; the format that the deposited copy must be presented in where different formats of the work exist; an obligation to give the deposit library information to make the work accessible and the timing when deposit must be made. There are also restrictions put in place as to the activities that may be undertaken with the non-print publications, unless those activities are authorised by regulations made by the Secretary of State. Those restrictions include copying the material, adapting a computer program or database, lending the material, transferring the material to a third party or disposing of the material. Even the using of the material is prohibited subject to regulations stating otherwise. The power to make regulations restricting various matters, including when non-print publications may be used, which readers may use the material and how many people may use a non-print publication at once is also provided for. The 2003 Act also contains provisions that prevent regulations meaning publishers must deposit non-print publications at Trinity College, Dublin unless Irish law on copyright and related rights contains equivalent protections to British copyright law, that the restrictions on the acts that may be done with non-print publications are equivalent to British law and that the liability exceptions in Irish law are equivalent to those in British law.
The 2003 Act also inserted various exceptions to copyright and database right into the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 , also known as the CDPA, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which received Royal Assent on 15 November 1988. It reformulates almost completely the statutory basis of copyright law in the United Kingdom, which had, until then, been...
and the Copyright and Rights in Databases Regulations 1997 to prevent the use of non-print publications by deposit libraries infringing copyright and/or database rights
Database rights
In European Union law, database rights are specifically coded laws on the copying and dissemination of information in computer databases...
. However, the 2003 Act enabled regulations to be made restricting the exceptions to copyright for non-print publications so that deposited works may not be copied more freely than an equivalent work available at an ordinary library. Various exemptions from liability against breach of contract; infringement of copyright, database right or publication right
Publication right
The publication right is a copyright granted to the publisher who first publishes a previously unpublished work after that work's original copyright has expired...
; criminal liability or damages for defamation were also enacted by the 2003 Act to protect deposit libraries using works and publishers sending works to deposit libraries from actions for breach of those liabilities that could otherwise occur.
Section 16 of the 2003 Act and the power to make regulations came into force upon Royal Assent
Royal Assent
The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...
of the 2003 Act. The rest of the Act was brought into force on 1 February 2004 by a commencement order. The 2003 Act extends to the whole of the United Kingdom.